Chapter Sixty-Six: The Heavenly Shackles Sever the Body (Part One)
Li Ren’s heart gradually sank into silence.
“Who am I? What is the meaning of my life? With such weakness and incompetence, what am I even capable of? Is there any hope for me to succeed if I go on like this? Success? What is it that I must succeed in? Living? Am I truly alive right now? I can only depend on others, and I have accomplished nothing on my own. I possess not a shred of ability—I have nothing. I am useless…”
A multitude of tangled thoughts swirled ceaselessly in Li Ren’s mind. The brightness in his eyes slowly faded, and even the shadowy Li Ren standing before him became negligible to him.
Before his eyes remained only a blurred shadow—or perhaps, even if he saw it, he instinctively avoided it. What his eyes perceived, his mind could not register.
Finally, his gaze lost all focus, drifting into vacancy.
His lips trembled faintly, and the face that once held a heroic air was now drained of all color. Red veins appeared uncontrollably in his eyes, turning them a ghastly crimson.
A single murky teardrop welled up at the corner of his eye.
“Hmph. A man with such glaring psychological weaknesses, and yet he’s survived this long. Who knows what kind of luck has kept him alive,” the shadow Li Ren spoke with disdain.
He no longer bothered to restrain his voice or hide his form; the man before him was utterly trapped in the ruinous world he himself had constructed. Even if he did nothing, this fellow would surely be destroyed by his own weaknesses.
The shadow Li Ren sneered, “Even if you made it through the Five Elements Domain, you can forget about passing the Human, Earth, and Heaven Domains ahead. Besides, you were dragged straight before me without even the buffer of the Human Domain? In my Heaven Domain, you must face the final judgment of your heart!”
“Just wait here for death, boy,” the shadow Li Ren delivered his icy verdict and turned toward the door.
“Take this place—your most familiar home—as your final resting place. That’s more mercy than you deserve.”
Though his words seemed to carry a trace of concern, nothing could conceal the heavy sarcasm that laced his tone.
The door opened.
“Who are you?”
In the pitch-black space, Li Ren spoke.
Even in this place devoid of light, Li Ren sensed with absolute clarity that someone stood ahead of him. Though he could not see his own hand if he stretched it out, he knew—felt, from the depths of his soul—that someone was there.
“Who are you, really?” Li Ren’s urgency grew.
Within this space, one’s emotions naturally became agitated and unsettled; Li Ren felt this all the more keenly.
“Your confusion will only destroy you.”
“Who are you?!”
“Me? Perhaps you should first ask yourself—who are you?”
“Myself? I am Li Ren! Isn’t that obvious?”
“Hmph,” came a cold laugh, “Are you truly sure you are Li Ren?”
“Nonsense! Who else would I be if not Li Ren?”
“Hahaha, and what if I told you—I am Li Ren as well? Or perhaps, who exactly is Li Ren?”
“You…”
“Why have you come here—so early?”
“Me? I… I don’t know. I don’t even know what this damned place is!” Li Ren’s agitation rose, though not from subconscious fear. Strangely, facing this unseen presence, his heart felt calm.
“Then tell me what you’ve been through lately. Let’s see why you’ve arrived at a place you were never meant to reach.”
Li Ren nodded—a reflexive gesture, meaningless here, yet he still nodded and spoke calmly.
He recounted everything: from encountering the shadow, to the Black Earth Domain, founding Falling Cloud City, attacking Yu Xiao City, and finally, reaching the Tower of Realms.
He hid nothing, confessing all, even repeating their recent conversation.
Yet, as he spoke, his mood sank lower and lower.
“So that’s how it is. No wonder you ended up here. Looks like it’s the doing of that Heaven Domain fellow,” the unknown figure remarked.
“But with your current state, you’ve essentially died at the hands of the Heaven Domain.”
“What?! I’m dead?!”
“That’s right. You should be dead. You will be eternally trapped within your own thoughts, until your soul is consumed to nothing, leaving not a trace. Or, perhaps, you might achieve total enlightenment. But who can so easily take that step? If many could, the Heaven Domain wouldn’t be called the Heaven Domain at all!”
“So I am…” Li Ren’s heart shook with uncertainty.
“You’re dead, more or less. But if you could die so easily, you wouldn’t deserve the name Li Ren.”
“Li Ren? That name?”
“Never mind. It’s not important for you to know right now. What matters is discovering where your so-called heart’s knot lies—your direction, your life, your goal, your everything. Your past, your future. Are you prepared to accept all of this?”
“They’re mine to begin with. Why should I need to prepare to accept them?”
“Hahaha, well said!” The voice paused, then broke into wild laughter. “Exactly! They are yours! You need not prepare for anything! That’s the way!”
“Then prepare yourself! Accept what you were always meant to accept, inherit what you were always meant to inherit, master what you must hold when you become immortal! Reincarnation!”
With those words, the pitch-black space began to tremble violently. Boundless darkness surged, and overhead, a streak of blood-red light appeared.
A faint moon shadow hung in the sky.
Li Ren stood upon the dark, solid ground, and suddenly, wind and clouds erupted, torrents of rain poured down.
Large raindrops hurled themselves madly from the heavens, crashing onto the earth and splashing everywhere.
Scarlet! All the scenery before his eyes was a wash of vivid red! Heavy evil, deep hatred, and endless resentment.
Heaven and earth gradually grew clear, transparent, yet so cold and desolate.
For reasons unknown, Li Ren let out a soft sigh. His heart stirred, and the world trembled with it. Thunder roared endlessly, and dazzling white light illuminated the distant horizon.
A colossal mountain of skulls—formed entirely of bones—rose before him. At its summit, a flag fluttered fiercely.
A crescent moon, a long blade.
“You have finally returned once more?” A voice drifted from afar, followed by more voices rising in succession. The earth quaked, the wilds awakened, and all gathered into a single chorus.
“You have finally returned once more?”
“You have finally returned once more?”
“You have finally returned once more!!!”